Compressed-air water-raising apparatus.



C. DE PREVILLE.

COMPRESSED AIR WATER RAISING APPARATUS. APPLICATION H'LVED JULY 7, 1915.

1,237,308. Patented Aug. 21,1917;

2 SHEETS-SHEET I.

C DE PREVILLE.

-COMPRESSED A'IR WATER RAISING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION PILED JULY 71 I915- Patented Aug. 21, 1917.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

CHRISTIAN DE PREVILLE, 0F PARIS, FRANCE.

COMPBESSED-AIR WATER-RAISING AFPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 21, 1917.

Application filed. July 7, 1915. Serial No. 38,524.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHRISTIAN DE PR1:- VILLE, engineer, a citizen of the Republic of France, residing at 21 Rue de Clichy, Paris, Seine, Republic of France, have invented a new and useful Compressed-Air "Water- Raising Apparatus, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to an apparatus for raising water or other liquid, sewage and the like to any desired height, the apparatus being provided with a balanced device adapted to open automatically either the inlet or the outlet for air, as soon as the scavenge takes place in the conduit.

The present invention relates more particularly to improvements on or in connection with the above describedbalanced device according to which a float of absolutely new'design is provided, which is balanced by the weight of a certain amount of water introduced into its interior. This float slides vertically along a red, the upper and lower ends of which are both shaped to form valves, the deviceworking in such a way as to simultaneously open the inlet and close the outlet for compressed air, or vice versa.

The new float differs from the floats known up to the present date in that, according to the principle upon which it is based, its lower side is perforated in order to balance the pressures inside and outside the float, thus avoiding any danger of its being ruptured or crushed by over pressure from the outside of the float.

The float being more simple in construction than those hitherto in use, the price of the apparatus is greatly reduced, while its durability is greatly increased as compared with the old styles of floats, which being completely closed have to be constructed with suificient solidity to resist all the strains due to the external pressurea result not always obtainable; moreover in spite of its high cost the float was often quickly worn out, ruptured or crushed. Moreover, a float constructedaccording to the present invention can support any amount of dilatation due to the effect of heat without being inj ured in the least, which is not the case with the old style of floats, which are completely closed.

Besides beinguseful' in connection with the elevator constructed according to the present application a float made according to the present invention may be advantageously employed in several other branches of industry, for example in steam or other boilers, in the interior of which there exists a pressure high enough to necessitate special floats possessing a high degree of resistance, while floats of the normal type, constructed according to the present invention, can be used in connection with the said boilers, etc., without their construction being strengthened or modified in the least, as the pressures outside and inside the float are always balanced. The float may also be used as a float for flushing apparatus or in connection with any automatic hydraulic regulating device.

The accompanying drawings illustrate, by way of example, one way of carrying out the invention.

In said drawings:

Figure 1 is a vertical section of the apparatus; Y i i Fig. 2 is a cross section on theline A-A of the tube T, Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of a flushing apparatus, constructed according to the printube 5, for the outlet of the air after expansion has taken place, that is after each pulsation ofthe apparatus.

T is a tube, which is provided at its upper end with a threaded cap, on the external surface of which are cut guiding grooves 7 which correspond togrooves provided on the inner surface of the central portion 4 of the cover 3. A ring or pad 6 of leather or indiarubber, serving as a valve, is adapted to come against the orifice of the tube 5, when the tube T moves upward.

The lower end of the tube T is provided with a flange 8, against which the float 9 strikes, when it moves downward, thus closing the opening 10 for the admission of compressed air. The tube '11 for the admission of compressed air passes down through the casing 1 from the top to the bottom and is soldered into the distributer 12 which is secured to the bottom of the casing. The said distributer 12 is provided with a valve seat on which the valve 13 at the bottom of the tube T is adapted to strike, hermetically closing the opening 10 for the admission of compressed air. The said valve 13 is 'secured at the extremity of a tube 14, rectangular in section (see Fig. 2) and soldered in the interior of the tube T, thus forming an integral whole with the said tube. The float 9, which is adapted to slide along the tube T is provided with a vertical tube 15, passing through it from top to bottom and communicating with the interior of the float by means of a perforation 16 located at the level of the water, which is in the interior of the float, so that the pressures inside and outside the float will be balanced, to avoid crushing the float. The purpose of letting some water into the float is to increase its weight; the weight of this water inside the float, added to the weight of the float proper and of the pipe 15, will insure the downward movement of the float from the upper position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1, when the liquid level sinks in the casing 1. If it were not for the weight of the water in the float, the pressure of the air in the casing 1 would be suflicient to keep the float in the upper position (so as to close the air outlet tube 5) even after the water level had sunk to the point at which it is intended to open the air outlet. A flat valve 17 is provided on the said tube 15 for the outlet of the excess of water which might be in the interior of the float, and the level of which should be higher than that of the perforation 16. The bottom of the float is provided with a plurality of perforations 18, through which the water .enters into the interior, and remains suspended there during the working of the apparatus.

The operation is as follows:

When the apparatus is plunged into the water, sewage or other liquid in the collecting pit or tank, the said water enters the in -terio1' of the casing 1, lifts the float 9, which coming to the top of the stroke, raises the tube or rod T, thus opening the orifice 10 for the admission of compressed air. This air enters the tube T and escaping through the perforations 19 provided at a suitable height on the tube T forces the water downward and out of the casing through the scavenging duct 20. The float follows the water in its downward movement and when at the bottom of the stroke comes into contact with the flange 8 of the tube T and been forced out of the casing.

As will be seen, the apparatus works au-' tomatically each time the float is at the top of the stroke, that is when the casing is full of liquid.

In order to avoid the leather or pad of the valve 13 becoming defective too quickly, the float may be provided with a stop 21 adapted to come into contact with the distributer 12.

The operation of the flushing apparatus shown Fig. 3 of the accompanying drawing differs more particularly from the preceding one by the important air-flow which takes place at the bottom simultaneously with the liquid and passing nearly in totality through valve 29, a small quantity of air escaping through the upper pipe 22 at the moment when the receiver 26 is going down, said float falling by its own weight, thus provoking the opening of the valve 33.

The waste-water arriving through the pipe 31 and the valve 30 enters the reservoir 32, ascends in this reservoir and passes through the strainer 28, in order to raise the receiver or float 26, said strainer is destined to protect the receiver the weight of which would otherwise increase owing to greasy or other substances capable of interfering with its good working.

When the balance between the small amount of air existing in the upper part of the receiver and the water-pressure is destroyed, the water raises said receiver, while the member 24 which closes the air-outlet of pipe 22 rises at the same time. The aperture previously closed by the valve 25 00 becomes thus uncovered and the compressed air coming from the pipe 27 enters the reservoir; a certain amount of pressure is thus exert-ed upon the liquid contained in the reservoir 32, the object of which pressure being to force the contents of the latter through the discharge-outlet 29, which is then closed by means of the non-returnflap-valve, which closes this said opening which communicates directly with the mains of the sewers.

As soon as the water-flow has taken place the receiver 26 falls down by its own weight and closes again the compressed air-inlet, by means of the flap-valve 25 which im- 15 mediately comes to lie on the opening of the pipe 27 the operation then begins again.

The apparatus can be regulated by means of the opening provided in the pipe 22 for the exhaust of the air, which opening has 1 to be so much greater the greater the capacity of the apparatus and the height of the flow-level to be surpassed.

The characteristic feature of the invention consists in the working of the apparatus destined to the evacuation of the waste-water without the use of any other counterweight than a balanced receiver, the weight of which is calculated according to the pressure necessary for the discharge of the liquid containing substances in suspension and to the height to which the said waste-water has to be raised.

I claim:

1. y In an apparatus for raising liquids by means of compressed air, a casing having inlets and outlets for air and liquids respectively, valves for controlling the airinlet and the air-outlet respectively, and a float movable in said casing and controlling said valves, said float being hollow and open at its lower portion to allow liquid to enter, while the upper portion of the float is closed to trap a body of air therein, the float being provided further with a pipe extending therethrough from top to bottom and provided with an opening by which said pipe communicates with the interior of the float.

2. In an apparatus for raising liquids by means of compressed air, a casing having inlets and outlets for air and liquid respectively, valves for controlling the air-inlet and the air-outlet respectively, and a float movable in said casing and controlling said valves, said float being hollow and open at its lowerportion to allow liquid to enter, while the upper portion'of the float is closed to trap a body of air therein, the float being further provided with a pipe extending therethrough from top to bottom and having at an intermediate level, an opening by which said ipe communicates with the interior of the oat, and a valve controlling the upper end of said pipe.

CHRISTIAN on PREVILLE.

-Witnesses GENTIzoN RoLY,

J. SALTZMANN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

